Spinneys, a locally-owned supermarket, has pledged to put a stop to single-use plastic bags in its stores across the UAE

The locally-owned supermarket chain Spinneys, has declared its commitment to stop the use of single-use plastic bags in its stores across the UAE.

In line with the new policy set by The Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi to ban single-use plastics at all checkouts starting from June, Spinneys stores in Abu Dhabi will be removing its plastic checkout bags with single-use paper bags to follow in July.In Dubai, Spinneys has committed to following the same ban on single-use plastics as Abu Dhabi and will be implementing the removal of all disposable bags at checkout. This includes bags made of plastic, paper, biodegradable plastic and plant-based biodegradable materials. The ban will take place in Dubai stores from July 1, 2022.

Helping customers to embrace the change, Spinneys will also reward shoppers for reusing, by giving customers AED0.25 off their total grocery bill every time they bring a bag back to store with them when they shop. This is as opposed to charging AED0.25 to use a disposable plastic bag. The retailer hopes this will incentivise its customers to consciously move towards the use of reusable bags only.

As part of this action plan, Spinneys has also partnered with Peahead.Eco – a Dubai-based award-winning sustainable artist – to develop a bespoke, premium tote bag made from 100 per cent sustainable materials and upcycled Spinneys plastic bags. Designed to be a multi-purpose statement tote bag, the limited-edition shopper has been ethically handmade by local craftspeople in Ajman using upcycled single-use Spinneys bags and even sustainably sourced and harvested cork leather. The bags are exclusively sold in Spinneys and will be available in select stores from June onwards.

These latest initiatives form part of Spinneys’ ‘Let’s Close the Loop’ campaign, a commitment by the retailer to work towards a circular waste management system and help close the loop on the plastics economy.

Visit the website: Spinneys and Peahead.Eco.